Relax (Don't Do It)

Frankie Goes to Hollywood said it best, but if you are anything like me you are just too busy. Work 9-5, Monday through Friday. You have something planned every night of the week. Whether it is business or pleasure and then when it is time to sit and relax something comes up and you have to do it. This is just the society that we live. A 24/7 mindset. 3-6-5 lifestyle. Why are we that way? Is it beneficial to us in our relationships, our own personal time, our physical health, or how about our spiritual health?
I think that the enemy has done a great job of creating distractions in our everyday lives that take away from all of this. Some would not be so bad, but once again our mindset is to have everything now and in our hands. This would explain midnight showings of the hottest new movies or if you are a video game nerd like me, the midnight releases of a new video game (I will be there at the release of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2; just saying). It is not just this. It is with releases of iPhones, Black Friday, Green Tuesday and whatever other color day that has a massive sale. My point is we need to not be so eager with what the world says we should have or what we should do. This is seen not just in getting stuff. It is also seen in the mindset of workaholics. As a workaholic we have to be working on the something all the time. Whether it is for a deadline, overtime, or cleaning the house. We have to always be doing something.
But the Bible says something contradictory. It is one of the ten commandments. Honor the Sabbath and keep it holy. Rest. Relax. Take a break. I like this quote from Rob Bell. It was actually from one of his tweets. He said: "On the Sabbath we live as if all of our work is done-even if it isn't." That is some great stuff. Even if there is a huge pile of laundry or if there is one last addition to that project we need to rest. What it says by taking rest is that you are more important than the work or the busyness. The truth is that you are. God knows this and thinks this. This also brings scripture true in your life. In 1 Corinthians 6:12-20 Paul is talking about sexual immorality and to abstain from it, but in the scripture he says that "Everything is permissible by me, but not everything is beneficial" This can apply in the area of work. Just because you can doesn't mean you should. The end of that passage goes on to say "you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body." We need to honor the Lord with our bodies and our time.
Take a break once a week. It will be hard at first, but if you make it a priority you won't be disappointed.
Exodus 20:10-"Observe the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Work six days and do everything you need to do. But the seventh day is a Sabbath to God, your God. Don't do any work—not you, nor your son, nor your daughter, nor your servant, nor your maid, nor your animals, not even the foreign guest visiting in your town. For in six days God made Heaven, Earth, and sea, and everything in them; he rested on the seventh day. Therefore God blessed the Sabbath day; he set it apart as a holy day."